Dear Senators Cornyn and Cruz,
I strongly
encourage you to vote AGAINST Senate Bill S.783, if it comes
up for a full vote in the Senate. S.783 is called the Helium Stewardship Act of
2013 and is sponsored by Senator Ron Wyden (D-OR). It would force the sale of
government helium reserves to private industry.
The American Chemical Society (ACS) has a strong promotional program asking members to contact their Senators to vote for this bill. Presumably, the reason is that there is a temporary shortage of helium in the public marketplace, which has boosted the price and made it inconvenient for industrial/medical users. The ACS says, "Passage of S. 783 will avert a shortfall of this crucial material. Without congressional action, the resulting helium shortage would threaten to disrupt manufacturing and research all over the country and make this already rare and valuable commodity more expensive".
There are 19 listed uses for helium. http://www.blm.gov/nm/st/en/prog/energy/helium/helium_facts.html. Several of these are of strategic military and security importance. For example, helium is used as an insulator in liquid hydrogen/oxygen rockets, cooling medium for nuclear reactors, blimps for border control, high speed ‘push gas’ inside air-to-air missiles for guidance corrections, and artificial atmospheres for divers and others working under pressure.
Other than federal government reserves, there are relatively high purity deposits of helium in North Africa, the Middle East, and Russia. In the US, the helium content of natural gas in Texas, Wyoming, Kansas, and Oklahoma runs 0.5 to 1.5% this helium is extractable by cryogenic means. If the public market needs helium, it can easily be made available by industrial production.
Congress envisioned the strategic importance of helium as early as 1924 by establishing a process of government reserve. I caution you not to disturb that stability for short-term pressure of making helium more available to the public at low prices. Industry can do this itself, without government help.
The American Chemical Society (ACS) has a strong promotional program asking members to contact their Senators to vote for this bill. Presumably, the reason is that there is a temporary shortage of helium in the public marketplace, which has boosted the price and made it inconvenient for industrial/medical users. The ACS says, "Passage of S. 783 will avert a shortfall of this crucial material. Without congressional action, the resulting helium shortage would threaten to disrupt manufacturing and research all over the country and make this already rare and valuable commodity more expensive".
There are 19 listed uses for helium. http://www.blm.gov/nm/st/en/prog/energy/helium/helium_facts.html. Several of these are of strategic military and security importance. For example, helium is used as an insulator in liquid hydrogen/oxygen rockets, cooling medium for nuclear reactors, blimps for border control, high speed ‘push gas’ inside air-to-air missiles for guidance corrections, and artificial atmospheres for divers and others working under pressure.
Other than federal government reserves, there are relatively high purity deposits of helium in North Africa, the Middle East, and Russia. In the US, the helium content of natural gas in Texas, Wyoming, Kansas, and Oklahoma runs 0.5 to 1.5% this helium is extractable by cryogenic means. If the public market needs helium, it can easily be made available by industrial production.
Congress envisioned the strategic importance of helium as early as 1924 by establishing a process of government reserve. I caution you not to disturb that stability for short-term pressure of making helium more available to the public at low prices. Industry can do this itself, without government help.
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